Homebuyer Apps Target Listings Under $500K

By Heather van Blokland
Published: Monday, July 22, 2019 - 5:05am

Sixty percent of homebuyers now think looking online is the best way to find a house and working through a real estate agent comes second, and some housing agents are adapting.

"This allows homebuyers that are in a certain price range that is really, really popular right now to see properties before they hit the market, and it also allows the agent to be able to get market feedback prior to it going on the market. We've never been able to do that," said Shannon Quagliata, a developer of a buyer app for open houses in Phoenix.

Quagliata said Phoenix homebuyers cannot find homes at lower price points as the critical shortage of housing in the $200,000-$500,000 range continues, and apps like hers let buyers expand a home search to see what's available before the prices are driven up.

According to national homebuyer site Owners.com, almost half (46%) of all buyers want more assistance in the buying process. This was even more of a priority for Millennials (64%).

Nearly half (46%) of recent homebuyers believed that an online search feature with the ability to find homes similar to those they are already interested in, would be most helpful, followed by 21% who sought neighborhood and ZIP code recommendations based on previous searches.

Buyer apps are a relatively new technology in real estate and serve as consolidated online directories of property listings that connect buyers with agents.

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